Editor: Islamic World Turns to Discover Themselves

In the twentieth century the Islamic world witnessed great changes and transformations as well as shocking tension.

The Islamic world, composed of the Ottoman Empire as well as the countries which were colonized by imperialists at the very beginning of the century, suffered the most depressed time from World War I to World War II.

After the unfortunate collapse of the Ottoman Empire, all the other Islamic countries shattered like the beads of a rosary and were collonized by the Western countries. There were almost no independent Muslim countries in existence apart from Turkey, Iran and Afghanistan.

A new era started with the independence of Pakistan in 1947, we could say. Pakistan, was founded upon Islamic references, followed by the other Islamic countries and governed by various regimes and founded in different geographical areas and went on in this way until 1970.

The Islamic world was exposed to the intervention of Western countries in the last quarter of the century. The current international system was seriously criticized and questioned for the first time.

Palestine, Afghanistan, Kashmir, East Timor, Caucasia and many more problematic areas appeared in this period.

At this time, the Islamic countries decided to get together and The Organization of Islamic Conference was established upon a decision of the historical summit which took place in Rabat, Morocco in 1969 as a result of criminal arson of the Al-Aqsa Mosque.

In the aftermath of the Cold War, the concept of “Islamic World” has changed a lot and gained a broader meaning.

The Islamic World gained a wider geography and demographical movements with the joining of Bosnia Herzegovina, Macedonia, Kosovo and Middle Asia which made them more active in the Western countries. From then on, the Islamic World had a meaning beyond the land limited to territories in one particular geography. We reached such a period that we can pronounce Baghdad and Paris, Damascus and London together, we can think of Istanbul and New York at the same time as the Islamic world. Now the term “Islamic World” is not only about demography but also about the culture. Muslims, for first time in the history, had to live with western societies in big numbers.

This brought about new opportunities as well as the challenges. Nowadays, the Islamic world, is to discover itself again and find responses to these questions below:

– Which mechanisms are needed for the Islamic world to act together and how?

-How could the rights of the Muslims in the West be asserted?

-What kind of a representation and presentation systems could be established in order to invite all of humanity to the authentic message of Islam?

-How could the authentic Islam and the truth within Islam be presented to humanity?

– How could Muslims tackle the challenges they face?

– How could the Islamic World improve spritually, materially, socially, culturally and politically?

The Pen started its adventure of publication upon the basis of answering all these questions, depending upon strong resources basically Qur’an and sunnah, and of establishing the luminous grassroots of brotherhood.

With the aforementioned vision and perseverence does it go on its journey.